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Slimline Zany Zebra Card

August 17, 2020

Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be

Monday’s are hard, but in this card making series, I will show you that stamping shouldn’t be. In fact, it’s quite easy. And with minimal supplies and minimal efforts, you can get fabulous results!

Today’s Monday card is a little bit different! I am combining the latest fad, Slimline Cards, with easy Monday stamping. And to help me out, I called upon some adorable zebras for my Slimline Zany Zebra Card.

Minimal supplies for this Slimline Zany Zebra Card include one stamp set, Zany Zebras, and one ink pad, Memento Black Ink. The cardstock colors are black and white, and for fun I mixed in lots of colorful scraps. This card is a great way to use up some of your stash in style!

A Monday Card

Slimline Card Recipe

Basic Black CS: 8-1/2 x 7″, score 7″ side at 3-1/2″

Basic Black CS: 5/8 x 2″

Whisper White CS: 8-1/4 x 3-1/4″ x 2 (one for inside)

Whisper White CS: 2-1/4 x 2-1/2″ (x 3), 1/2 x 1-7/8″

Multi Color CS: 2-1/2 x 2-3/4″ (x 3), 3/4 x 3/4″ (x 6), scraps for hats

Slimline Card Base Tips

To create a slimline card base, you need cardstock sized 8-1/2 x 7″. The easiest way to accomplish this is to cut 4″ off the 11″ end of your 8-1/2 x 11″ sheet of paper. That way you won’t need to “open up” your paper trimmer to get past the typical 6″ of measurement.

Cutting cardstock for the slimline card base

Next, you will need to fold the base in half. I find it best to keep the paper in my trimmer as oriented and cut above, and score at 3-1/2″. You can also use your bone folder to fold and burnish your card base. Just make sure it is the 7″ side you are folding in half.

Let’s Get Stamping!

This easy Monday Slimline Zany Zebra Card only uses one ink color, black, so it is easy to stamp everything at once. I started by stamping each of the three zebra images from the Zany Zebra Stamp Set onto pieces of 2-1/4 x 2-1/2″ Whisper White CS. The 2-1/4″ width is the top and the 2-1/2″ length is the side.

While the ink is still out, I stamped my sentiment, “kick up your heels!” onto the 1/2 x 1-7/8″ Whisper White CS. There are 4 additional sentiments in the Zany Zebra Stamp Set to choose from.

Additional stamping with the Zany Zebra Stamp Set

I also used some colorful cardstock scraps to make party hats. After stamping my hats, I used my Paper Snips to fussy cut them. This is not as hard as it looks, and I was able to do it quickly.

Assemble With Ease

Now it is time for the assembly process. I started by adhering one of the 8-1/4 x 3-1/4″ Whisper White panels to the front of the card base. Next, I adhered my stamped sentiment to the 5/8 x 2″ piece of Basic Black CS, giving it a matted look.

I also attached each stamped zany zebra to a piece of colorful 2-1/2 x 2-3/4″ cardstock. In my sample card, I used Daffodil Delight, Gorgeous Grape and Granny Apple Green. After dry fitting the zebras to the front of my card, I glued them in place.

Assembling layers for the Slimline Colorful Zany Zebra card

Enhancing With Color

Because my Slimline Zany Zebra Card is mostly black and white, I wanted to add color thru my use of cardstock. I chose this option rather than a coloring medium like watercolor pencils, markers or even additional ink pads. It is a great way to use up small scraps!

For every 3/4 x 3/4″ colorful scrap, I was able to get 2 perfect triangle corners. I used my Paper Snips to cut directly from one point diagonally to the opposite corner. By cutting in one complete motion, you will have a better opportunity to get straight and even triangles.

Creating triangle accent pieces with coloful cardstock for the Slimline Zany Zebra Card — For this card I used Coastal Cabana, Bermuda Bay, Flirty Flamingo, Calypso Coral, Pool Party and Balmy Blue Cardstock.

I added 2 triangle colors to each of my zany zebra pieces, keeping the same color in opposite corners. It is best to play around and find the color combination you prefer before you start permanently adhering them. And this is good advice in regards to the zebra party hats as well!

The last thing I added to the card front was the sentiment piece. I placed glue adhesive on the triangles it rests on, instead of the entire back of the sentiment surface. Because the sentiment sits up on the triangles, not all of the back of it touches the card base.

The Insider Job

You may know that I like to continue stamping on the inside of my cards, bringing continuity from the front. For the slimline style cards, there is plenty of room on the inside to stamp!

Stamping Zany Zebras on the inside of the card

Here, I chose one of the zany zebras to stamp. I also added some small stars in the upper corner, and squiggly ground next to my zebra’s hooves. Earlier, I had cut out quite a variety of party hats, so one of my “left-overs” worked perfectly for my inside zebra.

Inside card stamping and envelope stamping using Zany Zebras stamp set

Don’t forget to give your envelope some love! The slimline cards fit well into a regular business size envelope (the envelope measures the standard 4.13 x 9.5″). This gives great appeal to slimline cards, as the envelopes are so easy to come by. I simply raided my office supplies for mine.

Mail A Slimline Card Today

Slimline cards are really easy to make. Perhaps the allure is the different shape to work with, long and rectangular. As card artists, we seem to enjoy mixing it up whenever we can.

Out of curiosity, and because I like to make a hefty card with lots of layers, I pulled out my scale to weigh my card in it’s envelope. This slimline card just made the weight limit for one first class postage stamp. If you add any additional elements to my recipe above, you may need additional postage.

Slimline Options

There are lots of options when it comes to a slimline card profile. Slimline cards are very on trend right now, so a quick search will yield you tons of ideas. I took this same card recipe and changed it up a bit, myself.

As you can see in my autumn card, the recipe is the same, minus the corner pieces. I swapped out the layer of Whisper White CS for Gilded Autumn Specialty Designer Series Paper (item #153520). I added die cut leaves (Gathered Leaves Dies, item #150662) using Brushed Metallic CS (item #153524), Embroidered Ribbon (item #153554) and Metallic Pearls (item #146282). Finally, I heat embossed the sentiment from the Gather Together Stamp Set (item #150589) in Gold Embossing Powder (item #109129).

Slimline Inspiration

I hope my Monday card (and alternate card) have inspired you to try making a slimline card as well. My video tutorial can be found on my FaceBook page, as well as my YouTube channel.

As always, my online store is open at any time to get the supplies you need to create beautiful projects in your own craft room. Be sure to share what you love to make with others!

And see you next Monday for another installment of: Monday’s Are Hard, Stamping Shouldn’t Be. We will continue to explore easy cards for the hardest day of the week!

Ornamental Envelopes Part II

August 5, 2020

Envelopes For Every Occasion

For those of us who take the time to make a homemade card, it is no effort to create a beautiful envelope to go with it. Many times, I do this by simply stamping images on my envelope that coordinate with my card.

But what if you want to take it up a notch? Really make something special? Stampin’ Up! has you covered, with their Envelopes Dies (item #153531), new to the August-December 2020 Mini Catalog.

Envelope Liners: New Vs. Old

Let’s take a moment to recall the old Envelope Liners from Stampin’ Up!. They appeared in the Holiday Catalog in 2013 as a set of 3 framelits for $26.95.

When you compare the old Envelope Liners (3 dies for $27!) and the new Envelopes Dies (12 dies for $36!), the value of today’s offering is phenomenal.

The new Envelopes Dies not only give you 4 different envelope sizes, the dies are designed with an open end so you can also choose the amount of paper you want to use when creating the depth of your liner. And these dies make more than just liners too!

Die Cut Envelope Flaps

In Part I of my mini series on the Ornamental Envelopes, I covered the basics of using the Envelopes Dies to create beautiful liners. I also shared a handy measurement chart for each envelope liner size.

Today, I have moved on to experimenting with the die cuts that create peek-thru elements on envelope flaps. There are 3 different dies that are designed to do this, and the results of each are very unique.

The Splashy Spray

I started with the largest of the Envelope Dies accent die. I placed it evenly on my open envelope flap before die cutting it.

Die cutting the envelope with the Envelopes Dies

This will cut into the gummed adhesive on the envelope, but only slightly. You may need to keep this in mind when securing the envelope shut, and add a little extra adhesive of your own.

Envelope flap that was die cut using the Envelopes Dies

Now for the hard part: choosing the Designer Series Paper that will work perfectly with your Envelope Dies. Because DSP is double sided, and both sides will show when you are lining an envelope with a cut-away, you must carefully select your paper!

Choosing DSP for the Envelopes Dies liner — Since I am using this envelope for a Christmas themed card, I chose Heartwarming Hugs DSP (item #153492). The inside will show the red stripes, and the outside cut-away will show the green design. Both colors will coordinate with my card nicely.

I used the same technique as shown in Part I of my Ornamental Envelopes post to dry fit the DSP into the envelope. Next I carefully fold the envelope flap forward, and score the flap and DSP at the same time.

Scoring the envelope flap and liner using a bone folder

As I indicated in my basic envelope post, I like to remove the DSP and use my bone folder to burnish the creased edge once more. This will give the paper a clean bend and make it easier to close the envelope flap nicely.

Using the bone folder to further burnish the crease in the envelope liner

Finally, it is time to adhere the envelope liner into the envelope. For a basic liner, it is okay to add adhesive anywhere on the liner flap. In this case, we have a cut-away to consider. Therefore, glue is the best adhesive choice, and using it sparingly and properly really matters.

Adding adhesive to the envelope liner — I added a small line of Tombow Liquid Glue around the outside of the envelope liner. Then, I carefully added small dots of glue on the envelope flap itself, focusing on the tiny paper surrounding the detailed cut-away sections. There is a fine balance between enough glue to secure your project and too much glue that globs and overflows.

The last step I took after adding adhesive was to close the envelope flap onto the DSP. Here, I made sure the completed look was achieved.

Envelope Cut-away, closed — When closed, the green DSP peeks thru fashionably.

Envelope Dies liner in envelope — When opened, the red stripes add great interest.

The Doily Border

This cut-away die from the Envelopes Dies is similar to the splashy spray die. However, it is much smaller in stature. DSP will still show thru the envelope flap, but in tiny increments.

Using a cut away die and liner die from the Envelopes DIes

For this envelope, I wanted to try the large scallop edge to create a solid border too. I used Real Red CS to coordinate with my DSP colors.

The scallop edge die from the Envelopes Dies

I kept the CS the same length as the die, then trimmed it to fit the width of my envelope. For this version of my ornamental envelope, I chose to adhere the scallop edge to the envelope instead of the flap.

Open version of envelope with scallop die form Envelopes Dies — The envelope in an open position.

Ornamenatl Envelope with cut-away die and scallop die using the Envelopes Dies — The envelope in a closed position.

The Polka-Dot Bridge

The third cut-away die from the Envelopes Dies was the trickiest to use. Like the doily border, it is smaller in size. I felt that it sat most naturally along the bottom of the envelope flap, but this position bites into the envelope’s adhesive.

I also used the large scallop edge die again. But this time, I cut my Real Red CS down in size to fit the flap of the envelope instead.

Cut-away die and scallop border die from Envelopes Dies — This decorative envelope does not use any Designer Series Paper. The Real Red Cardstock provides the background for the cut-away die here.

I found this version of designer envelopes the most difficult to adhere. I added glue along the top and sides of my scallop die cut. Next, I used my aqua painter to moisten the natural adhesive on the envelope flap. Careful maneuvering was required here!

Adding adhesive to Envelopes Dies liners

Die cut envelope and aqua painter — When closed, this envelope front is adorable.

Ornamental Envelopes Stamping

The coordinating Ornamental Envelopes Stamp Set (item #153434) has stamps that can be used to decorate your envelopes too! And since I am still jazzing up envelopes, I thought I would try a little stamping as well.

First, I turned to the dotted lines stamp. This one is perfect for an address label on your envelope. I used Gray Granite Ink for my envelope.

Stamping address lines on envelope using Ornamental Envelopes Stamp Set

Corner stamps are a lot of fun to use, and I chose Real Red Ink to showcase this one. I love the continuity of dots in so many of the stamps from the Ornamental Envelopes Stamp Set.

Stamping corner images using the Ornamental Envelopes Stamp Set — When I use a smaller stamp, I prefer to use my ink spots. It is too easy (and disastrous!) to get ink from a large ink pad all over my clear block when loading the stamp with ink.

Envelopes Made Easy

Envelopes decorated using Envelopes Dies

The Ornamental Envelopes Stamp Set and coordinating Envelopes Dies are designed to make it easy for you to create elegant envelopes. Whether you die cut, stamp or both, you won’t go wrong with this great bundle! Head over to my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net, to pick up your set today.

Ornamental Envelopes Part I

August 3, 2020

Envelope Liners using the Envelopes Dies

Creating Exceptional Envelopes

Using dies to create fancy envelopes is not new to Stampin’ Up!, but the Envelopes Dies, item #153531, is new to the August-December 2020 Mini Catalog. There are 12 dies that help you quickly create custom accents.

In this mini series, I will be taking a look at the various ways to use the Envelopes Dies and coordinating stamp set, Ornamental Envelopes. To begin, I chose to focus on the 4 basic envelope liners in this die set.

Plain envelopes and Envelope Dies used for liners

The smallest of the Envelopes Dies perfectly fits the 3 x 3″ Envelopes (item #145829).

The Envelopes Die that is the next size up works well with the Note Cards & Envelopes in Whisper White (item #131527) and Very Vanilla (item #144236). The note card size is 3-1/2 x 5″. I call this the medium die in my liner chart below.

The most common Envelopes Die would be the A2 card size, a half sheet of cardstock folded in half. When closed an A2 card measures 4-1/4 x 5-1/2″. I refer to this die as the regular size. Stampin’ Up! sells Medium Envelopes in Very Vanilla (item #107300), Whisper White (item #107301) and Clear (item #102619) for A2 sized cards.

The largest of the Envelopes Dies fits an A6 envelope. Stampin’ Up! does not sell this size envelope, so I purchase mine elsewhere. The A6 envelope measures a whopping 4-3/4 x 6-1/2″.

Envelopes Dies Liner Measurements

You have the Envelopes Dies, you have envelopes. How do you know what size to cut your Designer Series Paper to make the two function as one? The Envelopes Dies do not come with suggested dimensions on the packaging (that was the first place I looked!).

So next, I did some math and measuring and came up with a chart of my own. I wanted to be frugal with my DSP, using only enough to make my envelopes pretty without wasting my gorgeous paper.

I determined that I wanted about an inch and a half of DSP to tuck into my envelope. Thus I came up with the following chart to keep with my dies for future paper-cutting reference.

Envelopes Dies Paper Cuts

SMALL DIE: 3 X 3″

MEDIUM DIE: 5 X 3-3/4″

REGULAR DIE: 5-1/2 X 4″

LARGE DIE: 6 X 4″

Envelopes Dies measuring — I used my grid paper to help choose my measurements. I moved each Envelopes Die up 1-1/2″ to find the height of the paper size according to the where the top of the die landed, and based the width on the horizontal number shown. This is the smallest envelope die and requires a 3 x 3″ paper.

Die Cutting the Envelopes Dies

After I cut my paper to the right size, I needed to line up the Envelope Die correctly before running it thru my die-cutting machine.

I made sure to keep the top of the Envelope Die (with the scalloped edge) to the top most part of my paper. The remaining paper beneath will eventually be tucked into the envelope.

Whenever I run a die thru my Big Shot, I try to keep the die at an angle for an easy entry into the rollers. This helps to take the stress off the die and makes a much quieter crank thru.

After you die cut your paper with your Envelopes Dies, you will find that some hand-trimming is in order.

DSP from the Envelopes Dies liner die after it is cut out.

I simply used my Paper Snips to trim off the remnants from both sides. The type of cut is not important: straight, angled, etc. This portion of the liner will be hidden in the envelope, never to be seen again.

Set and Score Your Envelopes Dies

Next, you can add the die cut envelope liner into your envelope to dry fit it. I made sure to settle mine into place just below the adhesive area the envelope came with. I also balanced it from side to side.

Once I was happy with the envelope liner placement, I closed the envelope shut. I used my bone folder to crease the envelope and the DSP inside at the same time.

If you want a really nice crisp folded edge, do what I did! I removed the liner and scored it along the crease with my bone folder on both the front and the back of the DSP.

More Score lines with the bone folder on the envelope liner.

Adhere Your Envelopes Dies Liners

And now for the final step: adhering the Envelopes Dies Liners into your envelopes. It is important to place the adhesive along the top of your liner only. The bottom portion that is tucked into the envelope will be fine without any adhesive, which is convenient since it would be a very tricky accomplishment indeed.

It is just as easy to put the envelope liner into the envelope and add adhesive along the top portion, then close the envelope flap down over the paper. If you prefer to add adhesive to the paper before you put it in the envelope, and then slip the liner in, that works well too.

Envelope Envy

As you can see, it is so simple to add some flair to the inside of your envelopes. In fact, the hardest part may be choosing the Designer Series Paper you want to use for your envelope liners! Make sure you stop by my online store, https://juliemakson.stampinup.net/ to find your favorite paper patterns.

Adding an envelope liner may not be something you do every time you make a card, but it is definitely a way to make any card extra special. And there is more in store, as I continue to explore the array of options with the Ornamental Envelopes Bundle in my mini series!